Tens of Thousands Demand Halt to Sentencing of Two Journalists; Judiciary Insists on Enforcement

The number of signatories on a letter requesting a halt to the 5-year prison sentence of journalists Elaheh Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi reached over 33,000 on Tuesday, October 23. According to a letter published on the 'Campaign' website, which calls itself an 'independent petition platform', artists, journalists, and social activists have called on Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje'i, the head of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic, to stop the enforcement of the 5-year prison sentence for Mohammadi and Hamedi. Meanwhile, Asghar Jahangir, the spokesperson for the judiciary, stated in a weekly press conference on Tuesday regarding imprisoned journalists in Iran, including Vida Rabani, Saeedeh Shafiei, and Rouhollah Nakhaei, as well as Mohammadi and Hamedi, that the cases of those who were pardoned by the Supreme Leader during the protests of 2022 have been closed. This judicial official continued by stating that there were individuals who, according to him, did not meet the necessary conditions for pardon and were not involved in the protests, and had cases from years prior in various fields, including 'security', which were being pursued. He mentioned that the part of their case related to the protests has been pardoned, but claimed they had charges related to the year prior to 2022 that were 'security-related and not connected to news.' Earlier, the Tehran Journalists' Guild had requested on Sunday, October 22, that the head of the judiciary use his authority to 'suspend the sentence' of Hamedi and Mohammadi. This demand came after the summons of Mohammadi and Hamedi, journalists arrested while reporting on the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police and the nationwide protests. Mohammadi, a reporter for Ham-Mihan newspaper, and Hamedi, a reporter for Shargh newspaper, received separate notifications on Saturday, October 21, summoning them for the enforcement of their prison sentences. According to the notification received by the two journalists, they must present themselves to the judicial authority for the enforcement of their prison sentences within the next four days. According to their lawyers, Partow Borhanpour and Hojjat Karami, the enforcement notification for Hamedi's case was issued despite the 2022 pardon directive. The Tehran Journalists' Guild stated in a letter to Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje'i: 'Since these two journalists have been acquitted of their main charge of having connections with hostile governments and logically should have been included in the announced general pardon, their return to prison is indefensible.' Hamedi and Mohammadi, who were arrested for reporting on the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police, were temporarily released from Evin Prison after spending about 400 days on a bail of 10 billion tomans. One of the charges against them was 'collaboration with a hostile government', which was dismissed in the appeals court. The United States government has repeatedly denied any connection or collaboration with these journalists and described the issuance of such sentences as an attempt by the Islamic Republic to suppress freedom of expression in Iran. Following protests against the summons of Ms. Hamedi and Mohammadi in Iran, Fatemeh Mohajerani, spokesperson for the fourteenth government of the Islamic Republic, wrote on the social media platform 'X' on October 22: 'The government is following up on the matter in coordination with the judiciary.' This issue arises at a time when Masoud Pezeshkian, the head of the fourteenth government, has not protested any of the death sentences or executions or the enforcement of these sentences to date. Support from artists for the campaign to halt the prison sentences of Niloufar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi. The Islamic Republic's goal in enforcing the prison sentences of Niloufar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi; interview with Roghieh Rezaei. Reactions to the referral of the cases of Elaheh Mohammadi and Niloufar Hamedi to the execution branch. The spokesperson for the judiciary regarding the cases of Niloufar Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi: the maximum punishment will be applied. Lawyers announced the issuance of the enforcement notification for the prison sentence; within five days, Hamedi and Mohammadi must go to prison. Lawyers for Hamedi and Mohammadi: the enforcement of the prison sentence is meaningless; the case should be closed.